


Magic Can Be Hairy

by MeagstheWriter



Series: Trimberly week part two [4]
Category: Power Rangers (2017), Runaways (TV 2017)
Genre: Day four: supernatural crossover, F/F, Magic, Magical Kimberly Hart, Trimberly Week, Were-Creatures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-24
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-06-05 19:39:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15177878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MeagstheWriter/pseuds/MeagstheWriter
Summary: The runaways end up near Angel Grove and need a place to stay for a while. As they stop to get some food for old lace, Molly runs into a familiar face she hasn't seen in years.





	Magic Can Be Hairy

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know what this is going to be but we'll find out together.

Days. They have been running on foot for days. The only stops they make are when it’s completely necessary to rest and when Old Lace needs to eat, which is about as often as they need to and where most of their money goes. They’re running on fumes and then they won’t last for long if they don’t stop somewhere soon. Nico is always cranky and nervous and as much as Karolina tries to soothe her it doesn’t work for long. They need her staff, but there is no way to get it without going back and they can’t do that.

Gert is actually in a better mood than Nico most days, and that is saying something because Gert is Never in a good mood according to Molly. Alex, while taking the brunt of her anger, ignores it and continues push them until they physically can't anymore. Karolina, while she doesn't get as tired as the others because of her half alien lineage, is the one that speaks up for the group one day. They’re outside the next small town and Molly decides to read the sign to all of them.

"Angel Grove, population five thousand, sounds like a good place to lay low for a while."

"Where are we going to stop with a dinosaur? No we have to keep going."

"She has a name you know."

"Sorry, we have Old Lace with us stopping is going to be hard."

"Well we'll hide her Gert and I have been training her a lot whenever we can."

"It's too risky I'm sorry. Maybe the next town we can stop, but not this one."

"You know you keep saying that and then we never stop. I'm just as much of risk and so is Chase because we have super recognizable faces and names."

Karolina takes off the bracelet that dims her powers and stands with her arms out floating in the air, but only a few inches off the ground kinda like Marceline in Adventure Time.

"Oh and I can be just as noticeable as Old Lace so be careful how you speak to her because the same could be said for me."

Alex starts to apologize with suddenly a large wolf starts coming in there direction and barking. Molly instantly gets in front, with Chase and Old Lace close behind her, ready to fight, when suddenly it's not a wolf. The form of the wolf shifts and grows in size until it's the size of a human. As it comes closer Nico makes her way to the front of the fight formation, ready to speak on their behalf. The werewolf speaks first, questioning why these humans are here and who they are.

"Are you a part of a pack?"

"Uh no, we're human mostly. We were just traveling through to get to the town."

"Did your car break down, because I can get it looked at?"

"Uh no, no car it's kind of hard to explain."

"I'm a werewolf. Try me?"

Karolina steps up next to Nico and takes the bracelet, letting her powers come to the surface again.

"I'm half alien and my bio-dad is evil and my other dad is helping him kill children so he can stay alive and my mother along with their parents made us suspects of a murder so we had to run away. We've been on the run for about a month now."

It takes a moment for the other young adult to react and in that time another wolf comes up to them and shifts into their human form.

"Jason is everything okay?"

"Everything is fine Billy, I was just trying to help these people but I think we need to take them to Kim. If you all don't mind coming into town that is?"

"We would love too but how are we going to hide her?"

Karolina points to Old Lace and Billy's eyes light up with wonder at the sight of the slightly malnourished dinosaur. Jason holds him back and smiles at the six of them and calms them as best he can at the moment.

"Well I have a pickup truck so she can sit in the bed, as for the town they've seen weirder. Come on follow us."

They slowly follow, a little bit skeptically, but as Jason drives them into town no one seems to pay attention to the the dinosaur sitting in the truckbed. Gert, Chase and Molly sit in the back with Old Lace, leaving an awkward Alex, Nico and Karolina in the back seat. What makes it even worse is that Nico put Karolina in the middle so she wouldn't have to sit next to him and she's starting to lose circulation in her legs. She probably shouldn't have told Nico she would do anything for her if it meant doing things like this.

"So where are you taking us?"

"A friend of ours has a place you can stay for a while that's big enough for the seven of you. Plus if you have people looking for you, they won't find you there."

Alex raises his eyebrow at that last bit but doesn't say anything about it, Nico however does ask about it. 

"Why won't they be able to find us?"

"She has a protective dome over her house so she can protect her coven from witch hunters."

"Protect her what from what?"

"A lot of people in this town are magical in some way Billy and I are werewolves, along with a few others. Kim just so happens to be a witch and she has a coven of other witches and even a warlock. Like I said this town has seen weird, weird basically lives here."

"Well here and Texas where Trini’s from,  she's the alpha of our pack. She'll probably be at Kim's house too."

Nico sits back and smiles a small smile at the thought of getting to meet other magic users and maybe getting a few tips on using her own gift. Karolina sees the smile on her face and goes to grab her hand to give it a squeeze but remembers that Alex is right there and decides against it. She bumps shoulders with her instead, hoping the message will come across the same way. The smile and hand squeeze she gets in return tells her that it was.

Jason drives them up to the mountains where Kim lives and Billy turns to tell them a little bit of history on the city and why it's a home for all things magical.

"Back during the gold rush era this area was the best place for gold and a ton of other different natural resources. The miners dug so much that they made the barrier between the magical plane and the prime material one really weak. Because of that, magic is really strong here and it attracts all types of magical beings. Basically we come here because we are the strongest here, but there's two other magical strongholds Vegas, and Midnight, Texas."

By the time Billy is done with his speech they're being greeted at the truck by a woman in a black dress and Asian features.

"Jason, Trini is not here right now she went out for a hunting trip with Z."

"We know, Kim knows we're coming up to see her. We found someone people at the border that needed some help."

Mia looks in the back of the truck and balks at the dinosaur, then focuses on Nico for a moment. 

" _Your girlfriend is cute."_

Nico jumps, both at hearing the Japanese and at the word girlfriend, and gives the other girl a hard confused look.

" _How did you know that?"_

_"I'm an empath and I can feel the emotions of other people, and the love radiating off of you two is strong. You might want to tell him soon though."_

She looks at Alex and nods at the other Japanese girl. Mia smiles, goes quiet for a moment.

"Oh good Trini and Z are back, and you can go in I just had to ask Kim first. Actually if you follow me I'll take you to Kim in her study, she's meditating right now."

They are led inside and Nico instantly feels at home and at peace, it's like all the occult and Wicca books that she's read have come to life and made her dreams come true. Karolina puts her arm around her, feeling the happiness coming off her girlfriend in waves, and give her a side hug.

"Nico this place looks like your bedroom."

"I love everything about this place, it's going to be very hard to get me to leave."

"I might want to stay too. Look at those bookcases."

Nico continues to look around in awe as they're led through the rest of the house all the way up to Kim’s study. One thing that they all notice is that there's hardly anyone in the house that isn't a person of color, actually the only white people they see are Jason and three other girls.

" _Nico you should stand in the front. Kim will be very excited to meet you especially._ She is right inside, if you see a giant tiger near her don't be frightened that's just Trini." 

"You want us to not be afraid of a giant tiger?"

"Trini is harmless, unless you try to hurt her pack or Kim. She probably won't even come near you."

"And if she does?"

"Just try to stand still, she won't hurt you. Okay you can go in."

Nico waits for a moment then walks in the room with everyone else behind her. There is a giant tiger in the room sleeping on the couch and they stop, unsure of what to do.

"Quietly enter please my mate is sleeping after a long hunting session."

All of them tiptoe into the room, including Old Lace as they try to enter as quietly as possible.

"Before we start the discussion of why you're here, I just want to tell you that you look like an ethnically diverse Scooby-doo gang. Okay that's out of the way, what can I do for you?"

Alex starts to explain but she waves her hand and even though his mouth is moving the sound isn't coming out.

"Not from you skeptic, I want to hear from your magic user. Why are you here?"

Nico clears her throat nervously and looks up at Kim and speaks.

"We need a place to stay for a few days and sheilding for the literal dinosaur in the room. I was also hoping to learn from your coven and about my magic because I know almost nothing."

"Lodging and training we can do, the protection would only last within the borders of the city. However I could teach you the spell so you can do it when you leave."

"That would be perfect thank you."

Kim smiles at Nico and Karolina for a moment then she rises out of her seat to wake the sleeping tiger on the couch. It rouses and they watch as it shifts into her human form of a shorter latina girl.

"This is my wife Trini, Trini they're going to be staying with us for a while."

Trini rubs her eyes and lock on Molly for a moment before it clicks."

"Oh my god Molly? Wow it's been years! Do you remember me from the funeral?"

It takes a little bit longer for Molly to realize who Trini is but when she does she runs up to hug the other girl.

"Oh my god it has been years! Guys Trini is my cousin, she moved to Texas to stay with her uncle after my parents' funeral. I guess it was to get ahold of your abilities in Midnight?"

"It was. My uncle is a were-tiger too and he taught me how to shift and control it up until I went to college in Vegas and met this one, then we all came here."

"Are you two actually married or is that just Pack lingo?"

"It's more pack lingo than anything. Because we're mates we're basically married so we just call each other that instead of mate around company."

"Wow I wish I was a were-creature that would be really cool, I'm just really strong for a short period of time."

"Strong like how?"

"Like this!"

Molly's eyes glow for a moment then she picks Trini, Kim, and the couch up into the air for ten seconds. She puts them down and leans into Trini and falls asleep. Gert pipes up from the back, staying near Old Lace, keeping the conversation moving.

"Yeah that's a side effect of her using her powers, she instantly falls asleep. Maybe you can show us our rooms so we all can get some rest."

"Of course follow me. As we walk there are a few rules to the house that you should know if you're staying here. No one of the opposite sex is to share a room together, sorry pretty boy. If the pack is here you treat them with respect, since Trini lives here they're here quite often. If you aren't a magic user don't touch anything because you will get hurt. And lastly stay away from Zack, we're still trying to house train him. Are there any questions?"

"Why are you trying to house train Zack and why should we stay away from him?"

"Because he's a vampire and I don't want you to die. Anything else?"

"Can you give Wilder his voice back? Although it's been nice and quiet I kind of miss his annoying voice now."

Kim smiles and waves her hand again and suddenly the sound of Alex coughing and groaning is heard by them. Nico smirks and makes a note to ask about that spell when she's training. Trini puts Molly in one of the rooms and Gert follows her to room with her sister. Chase basically drags Alex to another room leaving Karolina and Nico in front of Kim.

"Thank you so much for this."

"You two are cute I couldn't separate the happy couple. You remind me of myself and Trini. And don't worry I'll teach you that silence spell too. See you at dinner get some rest." 

They both watch as she walks away and then a few seconds later Trini exits the room she was in and follows down the hall. Karolina watches for a moment and then looks back a Nico.

"Are we that obvious? Everyone seems to already know that we have something going on."

"I think they can sense it because I didn't tell Kim anything about my magic or the staff she just knew. I think I'm going to like it here."

"Come on let's go get some rest. You're going to need it before you start your training." 

Hours later when everyone is rested, and a meal is prepared from the kill Trini and Z brought in earlier, they all sit for dinner. Jason and Billy aren't there but Mia and a few others are that they don't know. Mia comes up to the group of them and starts pointing out people to them because she can probably sense that they are lost.

"The tall one that is leaning near the wall is Z, she's a reformed werewolf hunter. She fell in love with a member of the pack, so now she helps however she can with the pack. Lauren is in the kitchen, she's a warlock and my mate, Zack is probably in there being forced fed animal blood. There are humans around and if he wants to continue to live here that’s what he has to do. Over there is Tori, Z's mate and Trini’s third. Gia and Emma should be here but they're probably in their room still. Wait they're at the pack house celebrating Noah's birthday never mind. I think that's it for who's here."

"Is everyone here gay or something?"

Gert and Karolina both hit Chase for asking such an insensitive question but Mia smiles at it knowing his intention isn't to cause harm, but genuine curiosity.

"It's fine, Trini is the only one who knew she was gay before meeting her mate. The way mating works, it's tricky when it comes to sexuality. Mating is also different with each creature so it's rare that two different creatures mate like Trini and Kim or Tori and Z. Those are the special ones in our world. To answer your question most of the people in this room are in same sex relationships yes."

"Can humans be werewolves or were-creatures, because I want to turn into a big cat like my cousin!"

"I think Trini has the answer to that, but anyone can learn magic if they want to do so during their stay."

Molly hops giddily on the balls of her feet and then runs over to Trini who is sitting near Tori to ask her big cousin. Gert looks at Old Lace and rubs her nose for a moment. 

"I'm going to take Old Lace to the kitchen so she can eat the scraps that are left. Karolina want to come, she likes you the most outside of me and Molly."

Karolina perks up at Old Lace liking her and nods following without a second thought, leaving Nico with Chase and Alex. As if sensing her discomfort Kim appears at her side and she starts to question where she came from but then remembers magic.

"Have you talked to anyone yet?"

"Other than Mia and my friends, no. I wouldn't even know where to start." 

"Let me introduce you then."

Kim walks her around the dining room conversing as best she can. Karolina joins her again at some point and that makes talking a little easier. During a lull in conversation Karolina leans down to whisper something to her that she wasn't expecting to hear.

"Old Lace almost ate the vampire, because he tried to bite Gert. I recorded it for you to watch later."

Nico almost laughs but remembers present company and holds it in to just a nod for Karolina to understand she heard her. Dinner starts shortly after that and they eat for than their fill, being on the run they don’t have time for proper meals. Most of the dinner is spent listening to Tori and Trini explain their magic to Molly and if she wants she can become one of them while she stays here.

The excitement coming off her can be felt in waves and Karolina is happy that Molly gets a chance to connect with her cousin in a way that means something to the both of them. She could of had that with her biological father if he wasn't trying to kill kids so he could stay alive. She is already strong enough to go against him without knowing anything about her powers and not die, imagine what she can do with some time to learn. She thinks Nico is smart for asking for training while they're staying in a magical stronghold. 

Karolina feels a hand on her leg and smiles without even looking because she already knows who it is. She reaches down and clasps Nico's hand in hers until they have to separate at the end of dinner. After dinner Z stands up and looks towards the six of them.

"Would any of you like to go into town for supplies? I'm sure you guys could use some clothes and things, and I need to run an errand or two."

Alex speaks before any of them can really understand what she is asking. Something he seems to doing a lot of when people offer to help them.

"That's sounds amazing but we don't have any money and I would hate for you to have to pay for us. We're already putting you out by staying here."

Nico and Mia both know that he's lying but Z just smiles and regards him.

"Nonsense I'm the butcher of this town, money is no issue, but if you would truly feel that bad you could work for me."

"I'm not gonna kill anything for you."

"Well what about just working in the shop while I'm out? Standing at the counter and taking orders isn't killing anything."

"I'm wanted by the state for murder."

"So am I in multiple states, and I actually did it. You're making this out to be bigger than it is Alex."

Chase rolls his eyes and stands, maybe he shouldn'thave asked for Alex's voice back.

"Look this is getting out of hand, Karolina and I will go with you, so Alex you can stay here. Does that make everyone feel better? Perfect."

”Hm el niño bonito si tiene un cerebro. ¿Quién lo iba pensar?”

Gert chokes on her drink Molly quickly tapping her on her back to help her breathe. Once she gets her breath back she starts laughing loudly. Z looks over to Trini and smirks, Trini just shakes her head and takes a sip of her wine.

“Parece que ya tenemos amigos que no tienen que usar magia para traducirnos.”

“¿Qué si te puede entender? Su novia obviamente puede, ella la puede estar enseñando.”

”Ella ha estado intentándolo, prima pero su Español no llega más que el menú de Chipotle.”

”What have I said about non-common languages at dinner Z?”

“I don’t know, I don’t live here.”

”No languages we all can’t understand, otherwise Mia and I would never shut up in Hindu."

"Which Mia can't really speak, she just uses her powers to read your thoughts to translate you."

"How about we all just speak English? Z quit while you're ahead before she mutes you."

"Actually you can go do the dishes Z, Tori can help you if you'd like."

Z snaps her fingers and three more Zs appear in the blink of an eye and go into the kitchen. She then winks at Tori and walks into the kitchen to do the dishes as Kim asked. Chase walks over to Karolina and Nico and smiles sheepishly. 

"Sorry for offering you up without asking like that but I figured Gert, Nico, and Molly would want to stay here for obvious reasons."

"No it's fine, I can get clothes for the girls and you and get stuff for you and Alex. You're working in the butcher shop tho."

"That's fine with me."

“Who knew you were a decent guy deep down Stein? Like way deep down. Like really really deep-“

“I think I get it Nico. I’m gonna go get my stuff.”

The trip to get supplies goes without consequence and Chase tells Alex he has nothing to worry about. Over the course of the week Nico and Molly undergo training, learning all they can from Trini and Kim about their magic. On Thursday Molly comes running into living room with Trini behind her. Everyone looks up for the books they're reading, and Nico from her failed meditation attempt, and pays attention to what she has to say.

"Guys I did it! I shifted!

Karolina and Gert sit up a little more and put their books down in anticipation.

"You shifted? Oh my god show us!"

"Okay I have to calm down first otherwise I won't be able to do it again."

They all watch as she visibly calms down with a series of deep breaths. Slowly her body shifts into the form of a young adult black panther to the delight of everyone. Molly jumps on Gert's lap and licks her face before going over between Nico and Karolina who eagerly pet her.

"Trini why is she a cat is it because of your blood?"

"Yeah our family is a long line of were-cats, I'm talking ancient old here. The type of cat was because of lifestyle, with you guys on the run she needs to be able to hide well and stalk ahead for any dangers you come across while out in the elements. She can also use her powers in this form."

"Can she speak in this form?"

"Only through a telepathic link that other weres have and her mate will have. There is a spell Nico could learn but she wouldn't be able to verbally communicate with you otherwise."

"Is she happy?"

"She's doing back flips in her head she's that happy."

Molly leans over to Nico and lays her head in her lap and Nico smiles before going back to her meditation. 

"She matches my aesthetic. Every witch needs a black cat."

"Yeah it's basically just her hair color. I have to go check in on my pack see you at dinner."

After that day at random times Molly would shift into her cat form and sit with any of them, especially if they were having a bad day. She sat with Nico the most when ever she was frustrated with how her training was going and tried her best to get her to calm down. That would be how Karolina or Gert would find the two of them most days, cuddled together on the couch with Nico's hands running through her fur lazily.

On a particularly hard day Karolina is the one to find Nico first. She sits down on the floor of the library where Nico has been trying to meditate and waits until she speaks. According to Kim the meditation is supposed to help her get in touch with her magic and supplement her training but it hasn't been working out like it's supposed to.

"Why is meditation so hard for me?! It's just sitting and not thinking!"

"It's more than that, you have a lot on your mind. Your magic is connected to your mom it has to be tough, because I know you wanted her to be the one to teach you. Just like deep down I wanted my bio-dad to teach me about my powers. Every time I use my powers I have to think about how I'm just like him and that one day I might have to start killing kids to live. I get that it's hard because you don't want to follow in her footsteps like I don’t want to follow in his, but we have too. To protect our new family."

Nico leans into Karolina and kisses her with a soft smile on her lips. Karolina can feel her  smile as their lips meet and she falls even deeper for Nico. She doesn't know how she got so lucky to be loved by the physical embodiment of rainbows, or if it's some dumb irony, but she doesn't know what she would do without her at this point. They slowly start to float in the air and Nico pulls back and to see Karolina all glowy and blissed out from the kiss. The bracelet is still firmly clapsed on her wrist and Nico smiles a little brighter because she made Karolina glow all by herself.

"Looks like I made you glow."

Karolina shakes out of her haze and looks down and she is in fact glowing and slowly floating up towards the ceiling all while her bracelet is still on.

"You always make me glow, I'm just better at hiding it from you. Do you feel better now?"

"Yeah I do, more from the kiss than anything you said tho."

"Stop it. I'm glad you feel better, remember this is your magic do it your way."

"Thank you for helping me through this."

"Trini told me that a witch's mate has an important role in her training to keep her calm and makes sure she rests properly. Even though I might not be your mate I'm going to support you like I am. That's just what I'm doing, making sure you're okay."

"I think you’re doing a good job but I think that rest part sounds good right now. Want to go...take a nap?"

The glint in her eye says they're going to do something in their room but not necessarily napping. Karolina, instead of answering, flies them to their shared room to take a nap until dinner. Trini and Molly look up and see them and Trini scoffs.

"She can turn into a rainbow and fly? God that's so gay." 

"I think it's cute. Their room is soundproof tho right?"

Trini laughs and nods then continues to where they were going in the first place.

Hours later Nico is taking a walk around the compound with Kim, just to get some fresh air for once instead of being in the stuffy library reading.

"You are looking much better than when I saw you earlier."

"Yeah Karolina kind of forced me to take a break for a few hours earlier. It was exactly what I needed."

"You were working yourself too hard, but I'm glad she got you to relax you're practically glowing. It must have been just what you needed."

Nico blushes confirming Kim’s suspicion that they had sex. She isn't judging, Trini has had to pull her way during stressful situations multiple times before. 

"The mate's job is to protect and care for their lover in high pressure situations. There has been many times that Trini has had to force me into a break from my work."

"How do I even know she's my mate? We've only been dating for a month."

"Did anyone else even notice you were struggling without you telling them? Mates are better in tuned with each other's emotions without having to ask. Don't question fate."

"It's really going to suck to leave at the end of the week. I feel like I belong here."

"You know where we are now you can always come back. You and Molly, and whoever wants to join you, have a place here."

Kim turns and sees Trini and Molly, in their were forms, running ahead of the pack of wolves and she smiles the sight and shows Nico their view. They watch the pack for a moment smiling and then continue their walk. 

"This place was made for people like the two of you, don't be a stranger."

"I won't I promise." 

"Good now let's get you your staff."

They head deep into the mountains behind the house but still somehow on Kim’s property. She knows that Kim inhereted the property from her family who basically founded this town but it's weird. She thought she was rich but Kim is generational rich as the sole inherent to an actual fortune. In the valley between two large hills, they start the ritual to summon the staff.

"Alright Nico all I need you to do is sit down and focus on your connection to the staff. I'll do the rest."

She nods and focuses on nothing but pull the staff has on her. She even pricks her finger to let a little blood seep out to make the connection stronger. They are out there for what feels like hours, but actually only about half an hour. Nico can feel sweat starting to form on her forehead from the sheer power in which she is using to concentrate and focus on the staff. 

"Just a little more you can do it!"

An hour has passed at this point, Trini has brought Karolina out to the clearing to watch in case something goes wrong and she kept passing around as they wait. Molly is there in panther form to provide protection and comfort in any case. They watch as a light starts to form where Nico is sitting and get expands until it fully encompasses her and grows bigger still.

"Molly get down. Get Down!"

Molly jumps on top of Karolina to sheild her and herself as the blinding light expands to the edges of the bowl like clearing and then dims out. They both slowly get up and see Nico lying down on the ground with the staff in her hand.

"They did it, Molly they really did it!"

Molly races off towards Nico and Karolina takes the bracelet off and flies down to join them. Nico sits up and shakes her head a little bit dazed, and she can feel the staff in her hand. It's in its exalted state ready to follow her command. 

"Nico!"

She looks up and sees Karolina, her mate, coming towards her and has only one desire and she she speaks it out loud.

"Take me to her."

The light in the ring of the staff pulses and Nico feels her feet leave the ground, flying towards Karolina like she is towards her. Molly stops, around where Kim is still standing in the clearing, and they both watch as the two girls come together in a powerful embrace. Karolina pulls back first, a little confused about seeing Nico fly, but happy that she has the staff back in her possession. 

"I thought I was the only one who could fly."

"I wanted it to take me to you and you were in the air. It brought me to you."

"That's the most romantic thing I've ever heard. You're incredible."

They kiss and slowly float down to the ground together, when they part Molly walks up slowly and Nico smiles.

"You came to protect me Molly?"

Molly nods and leans into the hand on her head while purring. 

"What's a witch without her black cat huh? Can you turn back human I feel like hugging?"

Kim comes forward to join them and places a hand on Nico's shoulder. She gets a good look at the staff for the first time and looks impressed.

"You weren't kidding about this being a powerful artifact, especially if it made you fly."

"It's a family heirloom and it has to be if we've been using it for almost a century."

"The only downside is that you have leave soon because you got what you came for. I don’t think I want you all to leave."

"Well like you said Kim, we belong here. We'll come visit I promise."

"Yeah I want to be here for when you and Trini actually get married because she promised I would be maid of honor."

Kim grins and hugs Molly close to her then they make the trek back to the house. Trini and the runaways are waiting for them when they return and they all stand when they walk in. Karolina starts to let go of Nico's hand in front of Alex but Nico holds firm and even intertwines their fingers. She looks down to her but Nico just looks straight towards their friends, daring any of them to say something.

"You got the staff back that's great, we can go now!"

"Why are you in such a hurry to leave Alex?"

"Because now that you have the staff your mom is really going to be looking for you because she's still tethered to it. We have to keep moving."

"I understand that Alex but she won't be able to find us here without the staff. Angel Grove is inside a bubble that only magical beings can see. Not on any map anywhere, the only way we saw it is because of Molly's magical blood. Tell me the truth Alex."

The light of the staff pulses and Alex falls to his knees.

"Magic makes me uncomfortable, not yours but theirs. Your's is only limited to the staff and you use it to protect us. I don’t like being the only human with nothing to offer!"

She leans down to get eye level with him and frowns. 

"You're a hacker that's something to offer."

"Yeah but not like Molly with her strength and Gert with Old Lace. Hell even Chase is more useful with his gauntlets. I'm pretty much useless on the run, it's why I didn't want to go in the first place."

"Yeah but we need your brain for strategy otherwise we wouldn't have gotten very far from home. You're needed Alex."

"But not by you. You have Karolina now."

Nico looks back at Karolina for a moment then turns back to him.

"Yeah I do, but I still have you just in a different way. I need the both of you, you're my best friend."

Everyone watches as Alex stands and hugs Nico then goes over to Karolina to apologize for how rude he's been to her on the road. They leave the next morning, Molly is the saddest out of all of them actually crying about having to leave her cousin. Trini has to pull her aside from the group and talks to her.

"I already lost enough family I don't want to lose you too, not when I just got you back."

"Wherever you go I will always be there just think about me and I'll answer. If you need me I'll come running that's a promise, you're not losing me Molly."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

They hug and slowly join the rest of them outside to say goodbyes. Chase and Z hug and she hands him a crossbow and about 50 bolts that Gert instantly takes away from him. Billy is still fawning over Old Lace even after two weeks of being around her and helping Gert train her. Alex is keeping to himself off to the side, looking at his watch waiting for them so they can leave. Z still puts the crossbow in Chase's bag when Gert isn't looking then runs off toward Karolina. Nico watches them hug then she hands her a set of sai swords.

"Next time you visit I want to see you dancing with these."

"I'll practice just for you Z. You do that thing I told you about with Tori, I promise you she'll love it."

Nico raises her eyebrow at the cryptic-ness of her statement but she has to wait to say something because Mia comes up to her and hugs her.

"It's been so nice to have you here, mostly because I haven't had someone to speak Japanese with in a long time. I'm going to miss you Nico."

"I'll miss you too and I'm sure you can tell I feel the same way."

"I do, and I'm sure Amy will be proud of you if you avenge her death or not. She's watching over you no matter what."

A tear falls from her eye at the thought of her deepest fears about Amy being spoken aloud. She's always wondering if she's doing the right thing going against her mother to fight her sister's killer who happens to be Karolina's father. Wow her life is complicated. 

"Thank you."

Mia moves to hug Karolina next and whispers something to her then leaves. Trini comes up to them next and hugs them both, Karolina a little longer, and then let's go.

"Take care of each other and especially take care of the kitten, I would like to see all of you again. Alive preferably."

 "We'll try our best. You take care of yourself too."

Kim and Trini walk with them out to the edge of the city to make sure they leave in one piece. Kim walks next to Nico and hands her a small book that is actually a journal.

"What is this?"

"All the spells you learned, I know the staff doesn't work that way but just think about what the spell does and it will listen. I added a few extra spells that I think you'll really enjoy."

"Is it that mute spell?"

"Along with a few others, take care of yourself okay? And if Alex is frustrating you don't take it out on your mate, let her be there for you."

Nico grips the book tighter and nods before hugging her. Kim and Trini watch from the border of the town as the seven of them leave. 

"I hope they come back."

"They will, I've seen it."

"Of course you have babe. Let's go. You want a ride?"

"Yes that was a long walk Raja, carry me."

"You're so dramatic, come on."

As the teens and young adults go their separate ways but with hope that they will see each other and a new understanding about themselves the mood is drastically different than that of two weeks ago.

"Hey you guys want to see me take a shot with my crossbow? Z taught me how to use it."

"No!"

"Put it back in the bag Chase!"

Molly laughs as Gert and Chase argue and he accidentally fires a shot into Alex's hair. Everyone freezes when he pulls it out of his afro then they all slowly start laughing.

"Sorry Wilder, at least it didn't hit anything important."

"My hair IS important. Put it away."

Chase nods, takes the bolt from him, and puts it away. Nico leans into Karolina as they walk and shakes her head at her crazy family. The one she's always belonged in and the one she would die for.

**Author's Note:**

> So we got there...eventually!


End file.
